Environmental Anthropology: A Historical Reader

Environmental Anthropology: A Reader is a collection of
historically significant readings, dating from early in the
twentieth century up to the present, on the cross-cultural study of
relations between people and their environment.

Provides the historical perspective that is typically missing
from recent work in environmental anthropology

Includes an extensive intellectual history and commentary by
the volume’s editors

Offers a unique perspective on current interest in
cross-cultural environmental relations

Divided into five thematic sections: (1) the nature/culture
divide; (2) relationship between environment and social
organization; (3) methodological debates and innovations; (4)
politics and practice; and (5) epistemological issues of
environmental anthropology

Organized into a series of paired papers, which
‘speak’ to each other, designed to encourage readers to
make connections that they might not customarily make

Michael R. Dove is Margaret K. Musser Professor of Social
Ecology, Professor of Anthropology, Curator of Anthropology at the
Peabody Museum, and Coordinator of the joint doctoral program in
anthropology and environmental studies, Yale University. He is the
author of numerous books and papers on the anthropology of
conservation and development. His most recent book is Conserving
Nature in Culture: Case Studies from Southeast Asia (co-edited
with P. Sajise and A. Doolittle, 2005).

Carol Carpenter is Senior Lecturer in Social Ecology and
Anthropology, Yale University. Her teaching and research focus on
theories of social ecology; social aspects of sustainable
development and conservation; and gender in agrarian and ecological
systems.

“Environmental Anthropology is a rich addition to
Blackwell’s successful series of Anthologies in social and
cultural anthropology. It intends to give historical and
theoretical depth to the largely crisis-driven work in this
burgeoning sub-field of anthropology. The eight-five page
introduction and bibliography map out a cyclical development of a
branch of anthropology which seems ever more relevant, given
contemporary concerns about environmental degradation, climate
change, peak oil, and resource-related conflict. The editors,
Michael R. Dove and Carol Carpenter, are well positioned to present
these extremely wide-ranging selections of works defined by their
timeless relevance. Dove and Carpenter have done a formidable job
in providing what is likely to become a key textbook in specialized
courses on environmental anthropology and a rich reference for
anybody interested in the multifarious ways in which humans have
lived and shaped their worlds.” (Journal of the Royal
Anthropological Institute, December 2009)

“This reader provides an excellent sampling of classic
anthropological writings on human ecology and environments. A truly
comprehensive survey of the field and a range of genuine classics
… articles that deserve their wide reputation. In comparison
with other readers on this general topic, the present one focuses
on truly influential, widely cited works and is more balanced and
comprehensive. Very highly recommended for courses in environmental
or ecological anthropology, conservation biology, and human
ecology. Summing Up: Essential. All levels/libraries.”
(Choice, November 2008)

"Anthropology has a long and rich history of efforts to make
sense of human societies in relation to their natural environments,
and this edited collection, by Michael Dove and Carol Carpenter of
Yale University, is an important contribution to that history. I
strongly recommend the book to environmental scientists and
conservation practitioners as a source of ideas about the human
dimension of the things they care about." (Environment
Conservation, 2008)

“This volume is the foundational volume on environmental
anthropology I wish I had put under my belt a decade ago. Selected
with scrupulous care and introduced with illuminating commentary,
this collection is Indispensable both for its intellectual depth
and breadth.”–James C. Scott, Yale University

“This reader is exactly what professors like me have long
dreamed of, but never had, in teaching environmental anthropology.
Dove and Carpenter, two of the field’s most distinguished
scholars, have assembled and integrated the perfect collection of
classic and recent essays on humans and the environment. They
successfully develop the key historic themes of the field which are
then fleshed out through a careful selection of theoretical debates
and ethnographic cases written by some of the best anthropological
minds of the past and present.”–Robert E. Rhoades, University of Georgia

“Distinguished environmental anthropologists Michael Dove
and Carol Carpenter provide a great service for both professional
colleagues and students in this specialization through a wonderful
benchmark sampling of articles from its history with an emphasis on
its formative and mature development during the decades of the
1950s through the 1990s. The progression of different phases and
approaches in the history of environmental anthropology is
exceedingly well illustrated through the five thematic parts of
this anthology. The chapters are placed in context through an
extensive, informative, and insightful introduction. This anthology
goes a long way toward filling one of the previously empty niches
among the textbooks available for this specialization and nicely
complements rather than competes with them. It is also
indispensable as a reference work.”–Leslie E. Sponsel, Director, Ecological Anthropology
Program, University of Hawaii

Instructors

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